Thursday 31 January 2019

Batten Down The Hatches

I suppose you could say I have been on a journey over the past two and a half years.  I voted “Remain” during the 2016 EU Referendum.  It was a relatively straight-forward decision even though I had huge reservations about the current direction of the bloc.  I looked on with horror at the way in which Greece had been treated and found myself questioning the merits of the community in terms of its moral compass.  In the end, I simplified the question by proclaiming I could never find myself voting the same way as the BNP and other right-wing factions.

As previously outlined, I don’t think there’s enough migration.  I saw the opt-out of the Schengen agreement as being a missed opportunity.  I also wanted Britain to adopt the Euro when it became the currency of twelve nations in 2002. I viewed the annual rebate as being unfair to our European neighbours.  Indeed, prior to the treatment of Greece, I’d always been very positive about the Union and felt British people collectively didn’t embrace it enough.  I suppose much of that outlook, especially in terms of my views on immigration, resembled a mindset more in common with the city I grew up in (London) as opposed to the ‘country bumpkin’ I had matured into.

Then we had the result and the reluctance to accept it. I spent the first 24 hours telling anyone who would listen, that Britain would never leave. Another referendum would be offered and the nightmare would all be over very quickly.  I also fell into the mistakes of many around me, dismissing those who voted “Leave” as racist little Englanders.  On the Friday evening following the vote, a BBC News special from Birmingham shattered a lot of misconceptions.  I can still recall my eyes being wide open as my jaw dropped to the floor, watching contributions from the second city, with notable participation from BAME voters, as they explained why they had voted to leave the EU.  This began the process of me starting to gain a deeper understanding. My lazy attempts to generalise anyone who voted the other way to me as a xenophobic cretin, were not going to stand up to any kind of scrutiny. A wonderful expression emerged which I have repeated countless times since, ‘not everyone who voted to leave is a racist, but every racist voted to leave’.

A short while after, the results from the city I have made my home for the past seventeen years were dissected in more detail.  The city as a whole had voted to leave by 51% to 49% which had already been something I had found trouble digesting. Yet this was nothing compared to my shock when the ward results were disclosed, revealing some incredibly alarming outcomes which left me questioning everything just short of the laws of gravity.  Areas of the city with huge BAME communities had voted for Brexit.  A part of the city which I had affectionately labelled as the ‘Hackney of Nottingham’ (St Ann's) and my own ward (Basford) which I have often likened to Enfield in north London, both were in favour of leaving the EU.

It probably took me another twelve months to finally accept that we were definitely leaving the EU in March 2019. I did buy into the prospect of another referendum, I clung onto the dream that it had all been a mistake that everyone would realise before it’s too late with common sense prevailing.  Then reality bit me on the bottom and I have become more stubborn in my outlook ever since. So much so, that if somehow another referendum is held, I would vote to leave the EU. Not because I have suddenly found merit in the fairy tale viewpoint of Liam Fox about a world queuing up to do business with us, far from it. It is actually down to a principle that votes have consequences and as a result, voters must take responsibility for their actions.

I resent this notion that the referendum was a unique chapter of British political history where lies were told. Elections have always been full of lies for as long as I can remember. Indeed, the winter of discontent which occurred exactly 40 years ago this winter not only played such a huge part in helping Thatcher win the 1979 General Election, it also provided the propaganda which would keep Labour out of power for the next eighteen years.

As a child growing up, practically craving my first taste of a Labour Government, I recalled those images from before I was born used repeatedly to warn everyone about the dangers of voting Labour.  It wasn’t until I was an adult that I found out that the overflowing rubbish bags in Leicester Square, a consequence of the industrial action by waste collectors, weren’t collated in such an iconic location by chance. It was a deliberate act, an instruction from Tory controlled Westminster Council who recognised the strategic importance of such a high profile site, a venue used for major film premieres and red carpet events. The most infamous image of the most notorious industrial relations dispute in post-war Britain did not come about as a consequence of events, but deliberate manipulation by a council with an eye on helping Thatcher secure a General Election which would be a matter of months away.

Likewise, when Labour finally ended 18 years of Conservative rule in 1997, a key message of their campaign was about “saving the NHS”. This cherished national institution was in danger under Tory rule and would not survive another term of mismanagement.  The passage of time has allowed us to re-examine such claims and indeed many of the problems of the NHS today can be traced back to catastrophic decisions taken under Blair which led to the private sector having such a massive role. The concept of building hospitals with PFI funding is something I have condemned as being as illogical as purchasing a house with a ‘payday loan’.  If the NHS as we know it vanishes in the next decade, then far from 'saving the NHS', those decisions taken two decades ago would've condemned it to a death sentence.

Which brings us to the grandest myth of all: the one that suggested the last Labour Government crashed the economy and in effect brought about the global financial crisis of 2008. Even writing such a sentence now sounds as ridiculous as first coming across the theory a decade ago, but it became an argument which found a receptive audience and became central to enabling Cameron to enter Downing Street in 2010.

They’re just three porkie pies, hugely influential as they were, but certainly not exclusive in the grander scheme of elections contested in my lifetime. Derek Beacon’s historic BNP council election victory in 1993 built on lies would be just one of many to have influenced contests on a local level. This idea that the EU Referendum represented a unique milestone in history where lies were told insults the intelligence of every single one of us, irrespective of which way you voted.

People fought for the right for universal suffrage, but far too many do not consider the enormous responsibility that comes with such a privilege. They click and share articles by the Hate Mail/Scum rags and consider themselves as being informed. I’ve expressed a grievance with such conduct for the past two decades, but the two publications are still the first and second most popular newspapers in this country. That is a huge problem which has almost been accepted as part of the fabric of having a “free press”, regardless of the irresponsible behaviour of such segments of the media.

One of them is often referred to as the “current bun”, like it is harmless, as opposed to the racist, wicked, spiteful and vile rag that it has always been for as long as I’ve lived. People who turn to these for informative reporting, can no longer be dismissed as blinkered when they have the vote and are able to exercise such rights while drawing on knowledge sourced from such dubious outlets. Their votes wield significant power and it is time that people take responsibility for their actions. If they insist on continuing to indulge in such poisonous reading, they must equally take on the responsibility of their actions when their ill-judged votes provide mandates for horrendous repercussions.

I think what frustrates me so much when I come across videos by activists like Femi Oluwole which promote the argument for a second referendum, is that the points he has made are extremely valid. His ability to outline the reasons for staying in the EU is very impressive. What annoys me is his energy, passion and slick videos were needed three years ago! I would prefer he devotes that enthusiasm to making the case for returning to the EU once Brexit has taken place.

Be under no illusion that accepting the result does not mean I have suddenly arrived at a conclusion that it is the right decision. I think it’s a terrible one and will hugely harm this country, but those consequences must be felt. Indeed, the nearer we get to the end of March, the more I find myself longing for a no-deal scenario. One which brings about maximum chaos, be it queues at immigration control, to empty shelves at the local supermarket.  I see it as a time we all have to ‘do a Michael Fish’ and batten down the hatches because it will get rough out there.

I strongly believe that the more brutal the Brexit, the quicker the momentum will build towards revisiting the question of the EU with the British public. Granted, once we leave, the terms upon re-entry to the bloc will be different. No more Pound, no more rebate and most importantly, no more opting-out of the Schengen Zone. It’s not a formality that British people will readily sign up to those terms, but this is where I wish people like Femi would focus their efforts upon and start making the case for a revised relationship as part of the EU. Personally, I have no problem with those terms, but as I mentioned at the start of this piece, that probably has more to do with where I grew up. After all, you can take Clency out of Tottenham, but you cannot take the Tottenham out of Clency.